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How Bongbong Marcos Performed as Senator

Here's a look at his work in the Senate.
by Erwin Colcol
Oct 26, 2021
Photo/s: Senate of the Philippines
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Former Sen. Bongbong Marcos is running for president, and his supporters and critics are trading barbs over his qualifications to hold the highest position in the land and lead the country to pandemic recovery.

Apart from questions on his educational background, debates also focused on Marcos’ legislative accomplishments as critics compared his work to those of his rivals, including Vice President Leni Robredo who defeated him in 2016.

The only son and namesake of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos served as senator for one term, from 2010 to 2016, during the administration of former President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, the political heir of the rival Aquino family.

Here’s a look at how Marcos performed as a senator, as well as his position on various issues:

Majority of laws passed are local in scope

According to his official website, Marcos passed 54 laws which he either authored, co-authored, sponsored, or co-sponsored.

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Of these, 23 were enacted during the 15th Congress from 2010 to 2013, while 31 were approved during the 16th Congress from 2013 to 2016.

Eighteen of the laws passed are national in scope, while the remaining 36 are local, which cater mostly to residents of a particular region, province, or municipality.

These local measures include establishing the cityhood of a town, reapportioning of legislative districts, declaring local holidays, and renaming of roads after historical personalities.

Marcos chaired the Senate Committees on Local Government, Public Works and Highways, and Urban Planning, Housing and Resettlement. In many cases, it’s the chairperson of these committees who sponsor the measures in the plenary, even if he or she is not necessarily the original proponent of these bills.

A further look into these laws through the Senate website also revealed that Marcos principally authored one of the 18 national laws he passed. This is RA 10632 or the law postponing the Sangguniang Kabataan elections in 2013, which he filed as Senate Bill 1186 during the 16th Congress and was considered as the Senate version (as seen in the last page).

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Other laws that he co-authored during the 16th Congress include the Expanded Senior Citizens Act, the Student Athletes Protection Act, the PAGASA Modernization Act, and the Children’s Emergency Relief and Protection Act.

For the 15th Congress, Marcos co-authored the Cybercrime Prevention Act, the Anti-Drunk and Drugged Driving Act, the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, among others.

Marcos’ website also said he filed a total of 222 bills and resolutions during his term as senator, of which 121 were bills and 101 were resolutions.

Position on key issues

As a senator, Marcos had the chance to comment on various national issues, from the pork barrel scam to the impeachment of the late Chief Justice Renato Corona, to the approval of controversial bills.

Pork barrel scam

In April 2016, while he was campaigning for vice president, Marcos was sued for plunder over his alleged involvement in the pork barrel scam, where he supposedly channeled P205 million of his discretionary funds to the bogus NGOs of businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles.

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“That’s the problem with us. Everything is all about politics. Justice becomes politics,” Marcos said after the complaint was filed.

“That’s what they do, if you’re not an ally you will be charged. If you’re an ally even if you’re involved they do nothing. That’s why we are victims,” he added.

Corona impeachment

Marcos is one of the only three senators who voted against the impeachment of the late Chief Justice Renato Corona on grounds of betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the Constitution.

“When the furor has died down and this political storm has subsided, I know that like Lady Justice, we shall find solace in the fact that this decision, though may be not popular, was fair, impartial, and just,” Marcos said as he claimed rejecting political pressure from the Aquino administration to impeach Corona.

“We may be faulted for erring on the side of conservatism. But what we are doing is redefining the relationship between branches of government, and when such great affairs of state are uncertain, the resulting instability puts every Filipino's future in limbo,” he added.

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Reproductive health

Although he was not an author, Marcos voted for the approval of the Reproductive Health Law, which was opposed by some religious groups.

“In my experience in public service, it became clear to me after being witnessed to the agony and the hardship of young women and men when they find themselves in a situation where they're ill-prepared and often ignorant of,” he said as he explained his “yes” vote.

“We must do something for them. And it was from this that I promise that I would anything that I could to improve the pathetic and heart-wrenching state of affairs. The RH bill is just such an opportunity,” he added.

Cybercrime Prevention

While he voted for the approval of the Cybercrime Prevention Law, Marcos filed a measure seeking to delete the provision that imposes a higher penalty for cyberlibel than what was imposed for libel committed through traditional media.

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“If a crime is committed by, through and with the use of information and communications technologies, then the penalties provided under the present laws should be imposed accordingly and should not be increased solely on the ground that the crime was perpetrated through the use of cyberspace,” he said.

Bangsamoro region

Marcos, as chair of the Senate Committee on Local Government, sponsored the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law in the plenary. Although the measure failed to pass the 16th Congress, it was eventually approved and enacted into law in 2017.

“Peace is the first step on an endless golden road to the future. Peace leads to order, which leads to progress, which leads to prosperity and dignity for all. Peace is in the soul of our nation,” he said.

MORE ON BONGBONG MARCOS:

Bongbong Marcos Not a Degree Graduate of Oxford University: Filipino Alumni

Those Marcos Videos on TikTok are Rooted in Decades of Misinformation 

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Bongbong Marcos Says 'I Have No Trolls' as He Leads Facebook Polls

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